WTB small/cheap Windows laptop rather than virtualising Windows on Apple Silicon

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Forums › Offers and Wanted › WTB small/cheap Windows laptop rather than virtualising Windows on Apple Silicon

phrozenpenguin

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#311717 9-Feb-2024 00:24

I need to run some Windows specific programs and use some hardware - and am solely a Mac household.

Its been a long time since I used Windows - and a long time since I virtualised Windows on a Mac. It might be easier (and cheaper) to source an older Windows laptop - so looking to see what is about.

At this stage no firm ideal on pricing. But ideally something smallish and charging with USB C would be ideal. Or any advocates for virtualisation who suggest I should try virtualisation on Apple Silicon?!

michaelmurfy

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#3192722 9-Feb-2024 00:30

I run Windows 11 on my MacBook Pro (M3 Pro) sometimes and it works well. If you've got the ram, this is an option that may suit you well. This can also run X86 (Intel) applications pretty well.

I just use Parallels: https://www.parallels.com/products/desktop/

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phrozenpenguin

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#3192725 9-Feb-2024 00:35

How much did the licenses for Parralels and Windows cost? Thanks

gehenna

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#3192752 9-Feb-2024 06:54

phrozenpenguin: How much did the licenses for Parralels and Windows cost? Thanks

Click the link for Parallels cost. Plenty of ways to purchase Windows but read that FAQ at the bottom of the linked page. If you do go down this path, I recommend sticking to Parallels. It's been the best way to do this since the Intel transition on Mac, IMO. VMware Fusion was the only real competitive product for a while but Parallels has always been the goat.

yumcimil

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#3192867 9-Feb-2024 13:11

Can you access the hardware via network, and just use AWS Workspaces or similar? Virtualisation isn't super-fun on mobile devices.

Mrcutiepatootie

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#3192923 9-Feb-2024 17:05

Depending on the software, you could try to run it using Apple's own game porting toolkit. Despite the name it actually runs Windows programs just as well.

I recommend Whisky https://github.com/Whisky-App/Whisky

tchart

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#3193023 9-Feb-2024 20:02

I bought one of these;

https://store.minisforum.com/products/minisforum-um773-lite

I just Remote Desktop from macOS. Works great.

I was run VMs on another machine but I needed a physical machine as I have a USB token for code signing.

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phrozenpenguin

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#3193181 10-Feb-2024 12:01

Thanks for the input all.

Parrallels is a bit expensive for my very limited needs, as its annual license and I don't have an existing Windows license.
Big fan of AWS Workspaces for other workloads, but again not keen on ongoing subscription, even if the hardware passthrough does work.
The Whisky toolkit looks interesting.
Remote desktop is a good idea.

I have since found some pretty cheap and decent machines on TradeMe, but also found I might be able to config what I need on the hardware via SMS...so currently exploring that.

nztim

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#3193182 10-Feb-2024 12:05

I would suggest look at ex lease HP EliteBooks....you can get these at a reasonable price.

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phrozenpenguin

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#3193186 10-Feb-2024 12:07

nztim:

I would suggest look at ex lease HP EliteBooks....you can get these at a reasonable price.

Thanks. IBM X series was the only thing I knew. Some of those EliteBooks look decent.

RunningMan

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#3193218 10-Feb-2024 12:47

There's a free for personal use version of VMWare Fusion Player. It will install Win 11 ARM, still need to get a Windows licence, but you could run Win 11 unregistered briefly as a proof of concept.

The other option is UTM, which can either emulate x64 Windows or run Windows ARM. Opensource, so not as polished as a commercial product but something to consider, depending on your needs.

phrozenpenguin

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#3193676 10-Feb-2024 21:17

RunningMan:

There's a free for personal use version of VMWare Fusion Player. It will install Win 11 ARM, still need to get a Windows licence, but you could run Win 11 unregistered briefly as a proof of concept.

The other option is UTM, which can either emulate x64 Windows or run Windows ARM. Opensource, so not as polished as a commercial product but something to consider, depending on your needs.

Interesting - thanks.

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sir1963

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#3193681 10-Feb-2024 21:39

https://mac.getutm.app

Its free.

phrozenpenguin

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#3193816 11-Feb-2024 11:04

sir1963:

https://mac.getutm.app

Its free.

Excellent - thanks for the link.